Postage stamp affixer attachment



- July 16, 1968 M. HOUSS POSTAGE STAMP AFFIXER ATTACHMENT 8 Sheets-Shee t 1 Filed July 26, 1965 INVENTOR. HOUSS July 16, 1968 M. HOUSS 3,393,113

POSTAGE STAMP AFFIXER ATTACHMENT Filed July 26, 1 965 a Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

BY MAX Houss July 16, 1968 ouss 3,393,113

POSTAGE STAMP AFFIXER ATTACHMENT Filed July 26, 1965 8 Sheets-Sheet 3 M Q m L I \I I l Iv m I w L! 1 IO v m n 1: 0 x I f N I. M'-

g G n INVENTOR.

BY MAX Houss July 16, 1968 M. HOUSS POSTAGE STAMP AFFIXER ATTACHMENT 8 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed July 26, 1965 INVENTO MA 0055 BY [6 [9H fi ter/7e M. HOUSS POSTAGE STAMP AFFIXER ATTACHMENT July 16, 1968 8 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed July 26, 1965 INVENTOR. MAX Houss M. HOUSS 3,393,113

POSTAGE STAMP AFFIXER ATTACHMENT 8 Sheets-Sheet 6 Fil ed Jilly 26, 1965 INVENTOR. M A X H O U55 July 16, 1968 Filed July 26, 1965 M.HOU SS POSTAGE STAMP AFFIXER ATTACHMENT 8 SheetsSheet 7 INVENTOR.

BY MAx Houss July 16, 1968 ouss 3,393,113

POSTAGE STAMP AFFIXER ATTACHMENT Filed July 26,1965 8 Sheets-Sheet 8 MAX HOUSS United States Patent 0 3,393,113 POSTAGE STAMP AFFIXER ATTACHMENT Max Houss, 1123 E. 26th St., Brooklyn, NY. 11232 Filed July 26, 1965, Ser. No. 474,654 16 Claims. (Cl. 156-522) This invention concerns a postage stamp affixer, and particularly a novel method of and apparatus or mechanism for severing stamps from a roll and affixing the severed stamps to printed matter. The term printed matter as used herein includes envelopes, cards, advertising material or other matter that can be stacked in a pile and advanced rapidly in sequence through the stamping mechanism.

It is well known to feed printed matter sequentially and rapidly through a machine. One such known machine is a postage meter manufactured and sold by the Pitney-Bowes Company, and this machine includes an attachment in which there is placed any desired amount of prepaid postage purchased from the Government. This known attachment prints by the impressions of inked dies, postage upon mail matter until the total amounts of postage which has been purphased is exhausted, whereupon the postage meter attachment will become automatically locked so that no further die-printed postage can be impressed on the mail.

The present invention is a postage stamp affixer attachment (as contrasted to a die stamp imprinting postage attachment) which replaces the postage meter in the machine and which takes the roll of stamps with printed side out as supplied by the Government, turns the stamps without rewinding to expose the gummed side to the wetting device, automatically severs the gummed postage stamps from the roll, and affixes the stamps on the mailing printed matter which is fed sequentially through the machine. An advantage in using actual postage stamps, as compared to printed postage, on mailing matter, is the personal touch or impact on the recipient of the mail who likes to feel that he is receiving a personal service as distinguished from that rendered to the vast multitude or public.

Among the objects of the invention are: to provide a postage stamp aflixer attachment which can replace the postage meter in this and other automatic mail feeding machines or as a stamp affixer attachment on other printed matter feeding machines which can use the roll of gummed stamps with printed side out as purchased from the Government without the necessity of rewinding the roll to expose the gummed coated side to the wetting or moistening device; to provide a novel method of and means for severing the gummed stamps from the roll by a rupturing operation as distinguished from a cutting operation; to sever the stamps in a double-action operation,

first by partially severing the stamp from the roll in one position of the apparatus while holding the partially severed stamp during its length of travel on the stamp roller, and then completing the severing operation of the stamp immediately before afiixation of the stamp on the printed mailing matter.

A feature of the invention is the arcuate-shaped severing blade which in one position severs only the opposite edges of the line of perforations which attach the stamp to its adjacent stamp on the roll, and in a second position, and at a timed interval, completes the severing operation.

Another feature is the wetting mechanism which controls the length of time that the wetting or moistening device is permitted to be effective. This mechanism includes a cam and a cam follower, and means for varying the length or duration of dwell of the follower in the cam.

Still another feature is the means provided for accom- 3,393,113 Patented July 16, 1968 modating or compensating for variations in width of the stamp rolls as purchased from the Government, thereby preventing or overcoming any tendency of the roll to bind as it unwinds in the postage stamp aflixer attachment of the invention.

A still further feature is the arcuate-shaped wetting or moisture shield cover positioned on the exterior surface of the cylindrically-shaped housing. This shield together with the timed or controlled wetting mechanism assures the wetting of only those stamps which have been partially cut by the severing blade and are still held on the stamp roll.

Other objects and features will appear from a reading of the following description which is accompanied by drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a known automatic stamping machine provided with the postage stamp afiixer machine or unit of the present invention. The machine or attachment of the invention is shown within the phantom dash lines;

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of the attachment of the invention with the front cover removed, showing also a fragmentary part of a known automatic stamping machine in which the machine of the invention is placed;

FIG. 3 is a front elevation of the invention showing the rotatable portion of the attachment of the invention, with the front cover removed, with the stamp severing or rupturing blade in one position of its path of travel, together with the stamp wetting or moistening device.

FIG. 4 is a front elevation of the invention showing the rotatable portion of the attachment of the invention, partly broken away, in the first stamp severing or rupturing position. This is the normal or rest position of the mechanism of the invention before the rotatable housing starts each cycle of operation constituting a single rotation or revolution in a counter-clockwise direction.

FIG. 5 is a front elevation of the mechanism of FIGS. 3 and 4 in the stamp wetting or moistening position;

FIG. 6 is a front elevation view of the mechanism of FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 showing the rotatable portion in the second stamp severing or rupturing position, after the stamp has been completely separated from the roll of stamps and about to be affixed to advancing printed matter, such as an envelope;

FIG. 7 is a top or plan view of FIG. 4;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary view of the wetting or moistening device taken along the line 88 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is an exploded view of the drive mechanism for the stamps and shows the pins or sprockets on the drive roller for registering with the lines of perforations between adjacent st-amps on the roll of stamps;

FIG. 10 is a front view of the stamp wetting device in the stamp wetting position and shows the cam follower in the cam groove. Certain parts of the wetting device have been omitted from FIG. 10 in the interest of clarity of illustration;

FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view of the wetting and blade severing controlling cams and cylindricallyshaped drum housing for holding the roll of stamps;

FIG. 12 shows three fragmentary views (a), (b) and (c) of the three positions of the stamp severing or rupturing blade with its cam follower in three different positions;

FIG. 13 is a front elevation of the stamp severing blade and assembly, partly broken away, with its cam follower in open position on the cam, corresponding to the position shown in FIG. 12(a), and illustrates the manner in which the blade is spring loaded; and

FIG. 14 is a sectional view taken along the line 1414 of FIG. 6, showing the centrally positioned circular recess portion on the inner surface of the face plate.

Throughout the figures of the drawing the same parts are designated by the same reference numerals.

FIG. 1, except for the mechanism of the invention shown Within the phantom dash lines 10, shows a well known Pitney-Bowes machine for sequentially passing a stack 11 of printed matter in the direction of arrow 9 over a bed 8 through the machine for the affixation of postage from a postage meter by the impression of a die of fixed denomination. This known machine uses an endless belt 12 which travels over smooth rollers 13. A trip lever 14 responds to the impact or passage 'of the advancing printed matter, such as an envelope or a card, to actuate a clutch-driven drive shaft for a single revolution. The clutch and drive shaft are not shown but are located in the rear of the mechanism shown by dash line circle 10. The known postage meter would normally occupy the space occupied by the invention shown by phantom dash lines 10. The trip lever 14 is actuated once each time an envelope or card passes it in its travel to the stamp meter, and each actuation of the lever 14 operates a springloaded clutch which, in turn, causes the drive shaft to rotate one revolution; hence the drive shaft, by suitable gear means, is intermittently driven for a single cycle or revolution. The postage stamp affixer attachment of the invention shown within dash line circle merely replaces the known postage meter in the known Pitney- Bowes machine, and is driven by the same clutch-actuated shaft which intermittently drives the postage meter.

The postage stamp aflixer attachment of the invention includes a suitable gear box 15 for driving, in response to a clutch-actuated drive shaft S, a metallic cylindrically shaped drum-like housing or casing 2t) adapted to contain therein a roll 22 of gummed postage stamps as purchased from the Government.

A cam 21 made up of two contiguously positioned metallic circular discs 23 and 24 is positioned between the housing and the gear box 15 and fixedly mounted on the same shaft S which drives the housing; hence the cam 21 and the housing are unicontrolled and simultaneously rotatably driven together in the direction of arrow 26. The gear box 15 is not shown in detail because it is of any suitable type well known in the art and contains suitable gear trains rotating the cylindrically-shaped housing 20 and disc cam 21.

The two discs 23 and 24 of cam 21 are each provided with an arcuate-shaped indent 28. Mounted on the casing for gear box 15, in stationary manner, is a hollowout steel circular member 27 having an irregular inner cam surface 128. The arrangement and physical relationship of these elements are shown clearly in the exploded view of FIG. 11.

The housing 20 is made of steel and has a closed metallic backing as an integral part thereof to which the driving shaft is fastened. An eccentrically positioned post 40 in the interior of the housing 20 supports a roll of postage stamps 22 with the printed side out and the gummed coated side in, in the manner purchased from the Government. The stamps of the roll first pass over a smooth round post 42 and then over a pin roller 43 which is positioned close to the inner cylindrical surface of the housing 20. As will be noted from FIG. 9, this pin roller is provided with a plurality of spaced pins or sprockets which are designed to enter into the spaced lines of perforations 44 separating adjacent stamps on the roll 22. The pin roller 43 is made up of a plurality of individual rolls clamped together such that adjacent pins in the same horizontal lines are spaced apart sufficiently to permit a pair of rollers 144 on a bracket 45 to rest against the stamp and hold it firmly on the pin roller 43. A spring 46 in the bracket 45 assures a desired degree of pressure of the rollers 144 against the stamps. To enable threading the roll of stamps over the pin roller when the stamps are first placed into the mechanism of the invention, these rollers 144 are movable away from the pin roller 43 by the use of a suitable tool which by insertion into a slot 47 in the rear of the bracket causes the rollers 144 and its supporting elements to be retracted against the springs and away from the pin roller 43. Positioned on opposite sides of the pin roller 43 are the metallic brackets 147 and 48 which are grooved to permit the pins on the roller 43 to pass freely theret-hrough. Bracket 48 strips the stamps off the pin roller 43 and guides the stamps to the exit slot.

The cylindrical housing 20 is provided With an exit slot 50 for enabling the postage stamps to emerge from the housing with the gummed side facing out as the housing rotates and the roll 22 of stamps unwinds. This slot 50 need not and preferably does not extend over the entire width of the cylindrical housing 20. The sides of slot 50 are tapered, particularly that side towards which the stamps advance as they emerge from the housing.

On the exterior surface of the cylindrical housing 20 and extending over a small area on both sides of the exit slot 50 there is provided an arcuate-shaped moisture shield cover 51 which is fastened at only one end to the housing 20 by suitable fasteners 52, such as threaded screws. See FIGS. 2 and 7. The other end of the moisture shield cover 51 is open. The shield is spaced away from the outer surface of the housing over the exit slot 50 and beyond such exit slot in the direction in which the stamps advance outside of the housing so as to permit the feeding of stamps between the shield cover and the housing. The metal thickness of the housing 20 immediately beyond the open end of moisture shield cover 51 at the region 53 is thicker than the metal thickness of the housing at other parts thereof on its cylindrical surface, as shown. See FIGS. 3 and 7. Specifically, the outer surface of the cylindrical drum housing 20 is undercut at 154 immediately beyond the stamp location to prevent the printed matter, such as an envelope or card, from being distorted due to rotatable motion of the housing 20, which motion causes air pockets. The housing 20 thus has a maximum outer surface diameter at the location on which the stamp rests after emerging from the exit slot 50 and before being moistened and severed, as will appear hereinafter, thereby assuring a positive position register and immediate aflixing of the stamp on the printed matter. As will also appear later on in the description, there is provided a wetting device having a wetting pad which rides over the shield cover and is so timed that it together with the shield permits the wetting of only that stamp or stamps which have emerged from the space between the shield and housing outer surface and are being held by the severing blade.

Mounted on and securely fastened to one end of the pin roller 43 there is a wheel 54 having a plurality, in this case four, of radially positioned spokes 55. These spokes have tapered sides and are Wider at the center than at their ends. This wheel 54 drives the pin roller 43 for advancing the postage stamps in their passage from the roll 22 toward and out from the exit slot 50. The wheel 54, and its associated pin roller 43, is partially rotated a predetermined distance each cycle or revolution of the housing 20 by the impact with a spoke thereof of a stationary lug 56 which is attached to an outer stationary metallic cover 57. Note FIGS. 1 and 9. This outer stationary cover 57 is spaced away from the housing 20 and supported by two posts 58 extending from the gear box casing 15 and into which bolts passing through holes 59 in the cover 57 are threaded. The posts 58 are undercut at their ends remote from the gear box and provided with threaded hollow interiors at these open ends. The threaded bolts are attached to handles 60. The stationary metallic cover 57 is provided with a transparent plastic window 61 to enable visual observation of some of the parts behind the window. The stationary lug 56, which causes the wheel 54 to rotate a one-quarter A) turn by the impact of this lug on one of spokes 55 of the wheel as the housing 20 (to which the pin roller and wheel are fastened) rotatespast the stationary lug, is adjustable in position in a slot 62 in the metallic cover 57 (note FIGS. 1 and 9). This adjustment is accomplished by a handle 64 (note FIG. 1) attached to a rotatable worm or gear 63 the threads of which enter and pass through a threaded hole in the lug 56. Note FIG. 9. The purpose of this adjustment in position of the lug 56 is to vary the precise time of impact of the wheel with the lug, thereby varying or adjusting the timing of the advancement of the stamps over the pin roller, and hence advancing or retarding the severing position of the stamp under the severing blade.

The housing 20 is provided with a circular removable transparent plastic face plate 65 shown partly broken away in the drawings. This face plate is in disc form and is transparent to enable visual observation of the roll of stamps behind it and within the cylindrical drum housing 20. A suitable knob 66, knurled or otherwise (note FIG. 14), is provided on one end of a screw 68 which passes through a centrally positioned hole in the face plate and threadedly engages the threaded interior end part ,of the eccentrically positioned post 40 which holds the stamp roll 22, to thereby hold the face plate in place on post 40. Note FIG. 14. Face plate 65 is undercut on its inner surface at 67 for a circular area adjacent the central portion thereof. The thicker larger diameter portion of the face plate 65 contacts the large size rolls of postage stamps and acts as a light brake on the roll as it tends to unwind, while the thinner inner undercut portion 67 permits the small size rolls of postage stamps to unwind freely in unrestricted manner. Since different rolls of postage stamps, as purchased from the Government, vary slightly in width, due to the manufacturing processes, means are provided for accommodating or compensating for these variations in width of the stamp rolls. This is achieved by a standoff fitting 69 positioned between the knob 66 and the face plate and which has a hollow nipple 78 provided with threads on the exterior surface thereof attached to a knurled adjusting knob. The nipple 70 threadedly engages threads in the centrally positioned hole of the plastic face plate 65. The interior diameter of the hollow nipple 70 is slightly larger than the diameter of the threads on screw 68, thereby permitting the screw 68 to slide freely within the nipple 70 when it is desired to remove the face plate from or attach it to the post 40. By turning the circular knurled knob fitting 69, the knob 66 can be placed closer to or further away from the face plate and the end of post 40, due to the interposition of the adjustable fitting.

The face plate 65 is so designed that it has a small arcuate-shaped section 95 which fits into a notch or recess 96 on the adjacent circular edge of the cylindrical metal housing 20, to prevent the roll of postage stamps 22 from wandering out of the housing 20 as the roll 22 unwinds. Without this arcuate-shaped section 95 and the notch or recess 96, the stamps may wander and slide into the space between the face plate and the interior cylindrical wall of the housing 20 and cause tearing of the stamps.

The wetting device The wetting device for moistening the gummed coated surface of the stamps includes a cam follower roller 30 which travels over the outer peripheral surface of circular cam 21 as the cam rotates. An arched resilient metallic sheet 31, for example beryllium, holds a wetting pad or sponge 29 in a slot near one end of the sheet 31. This wetting pad extends into awater reservoir 33 which is fed with water from a container 34 through a tube 35. The cam follower roller 30 is fastened to that end of arched sheet 31 which holds the wetting pad 29, and this same end of sheet 31 is fastened by screws to a bar 37 which in turn is linked at both ends to bars 38, 38 slidable in oppositely disposed slots in a bracket 36 (note FIG. 7). The other end of arched sheet 31 is fastened to the slotted bracket 36. The cam follower roller 30 is adapted to rest in both indents or grooves of the discs 23 and 24 of cam 21 when both of these indents register with each other. The discs 23 and 24 are individually adjustable on the shaft on which they are mounted, as

by loosening mounting screws and then tightening the screws after the desired disc is rotated to a desired position. Hence, the time or duration in which the cam follower rides within the indents (the period of dwell) is adjustable merely by suitably positioning the two discs of the cam 21 so that the indents on both discs register for the precise time interval during which it is desired that the wetting mechanism be effective to wet the stamps. Put in other words, the length of dwell of the cam follower 30 in the indents of cam 21 determines how long the wetting pad rests against the stamps. By lengthening the dwell, the Wetting device can moisten one, two or three or any desired number of stamps to be afiixed on an envelope during each cycle or revolution of the drum housing 20. When the cam follower roller 30 moves on the periphery of cam 21 and is outside of both indents 28, the movable end of resilient arched sheet 31 which holds the wetting pad 29 is withdrawn toward the bracket 36 and the pad does not contact the outer surface of cylindrically-shape-d housing 20. However, when the cam follower roller 30 rides within both of the indents 28 of both discs 23 and 24, the movable end of arched sheet 31 is released outwardly, thereby permitting the wetting pad to contact the outer surface of the cylindrically-shaped drum housing 20.

The severing blade assembly For severing the stamps from the roll 22 along the lines of perforations, there is provided a cam-controlled thin severing blade 70 shown in detail in FIGS. 12 and 13. This blade is shown as'a rectangular thin metal sheet with a cut out portion 71 having an arcuate-shaped severing surface 72. This arcuate-shaped severing surface is an important feature of the severing blade. The severing blade assembly is mounted on the cylindrical housing 20 immediately beyond the open end of moisture shield cover 51 at the location of the thicker material region 53 of the housing 20. Note FIG. 2. The blade itself has a pair of opposite edges tightly held in slots in a pair of cutter posts '74 and and all three elements move in the two directions indicated by the bidirectional arrow 76 (note FIG. 13) in response to the movement of cam follower roller 77 over the irregular interior cam surface 128 of cam 27 (note FIGS. 11, 12 and 13). The cam follower includes a round rod 78, one end of which is tightly held in cutter posts 74 either by a press fit or by a set screw. This same round rod 78 passes through cutter post 75 and is firmly held in position in post 75 by a set screw. Post 74 is shown as square in shape while post 75 is round. Although square cutter post 74 extends outside one edge of the cylinder of housing 20, the round post 75 passes through and slides within a hole in the metal of the cylinder of housing 20 near the opposite edge. Note FIGS. 2 and 7. The lower part of cutter post 75 below the rod 78, as shown in FIG. 13, is hollow and accommodates a resilient spring 79 which always acts in a direction to exert pressure against the cam follower rod. Thus the entire severing blade assembly including the blade 72 and the two cutter posts move bidirectionally as the cam follower roller 77 moves or rides over the irregular inner surface 128 of the cam 27. A metal block 80 is fastened to the surface of cam disc 23 which faces the housing 26. This metal block is providedwith a slot 81 in which the rod 78 slides bidirectionally as the cam follower roller 77 moves over the cam 27. Note FIG. 7.

The thin blade 70 fits into and slides within a narrow but slightly wider slot 82 which extends completely through the cylindrical metal portion of housing 20. In the operation of the severing blade, it assumes three positions for each revolution of the cylindrical housing, as shown in FIGS. 12(0), (1)) and (c). In one position, corresponding to FIG. 12(a) and FIG. 13, the arcuate portion 72 of blade 70 is fully withdrawn outside the cylinder of housing 20 to enable the postage stamp 22' to pass therethrough. This position occurs when the cam follower roller 77 is in the region A on the irregular inner surface of cam 27, as shown in FIG. 11. In the second position, the blade 70 is partially retracted so that the arcuate surface 72 has descended to rupture the perforations at only both edges of the stamp roll, while the stamp 22 is still held on the roll by the centrally located uncut perforations. This second position occurs when the cam follower roller 77 is in the region B on the irregular inner surface 128 of cam 27 as shown in FIG. 11. In the third position, the blade 70 is fully retracted below the outer cylindrical surface of the housing 20 and has completely ruptured the entire line of perforations between adjacent stamps. This third position occurs when the cam follower roller 77 is in the region C on the irregular inner surface 128 of cam 27 as shown in FIG. 11. The regions A, B and C of the cam 27 are shown in dotted lines in FIGS. 3, 4, and 6. These figures are front elevation views showing different positions of the cylinder hOUSing 20 during a single cycle or revolution. It will thus be seen that the blade has two rupturing positions, one in which the postage stam is only partially severed from the stamp roll and the other in which the postage stamp is completely severed from the stamp rollthis last action takes place after the gummed surface of the stamp has been moistened and immediately before the stamp is affixed to the printed matter, such as an envelope or card.

It should be noted that when the cam follower roller 77 is in the region A of the cam 27, the severing blade 72 is withdrawn above the outer cylindrical surface of housing, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. However, when the cam follower roller 77 is in the region B of the cam 27, in which position the stamp is only partially severed, the uppermost edge of the blade 77 has been retracted below the top surface of the moisture shield cover 51, as shown in FIG. 4, in order not to interfere with the wetting action of the stamp as the wetting pad 29 sweeps over the moisture shield cover 51 during the counter-clockwise rotation of the housing 20. In the final complete severing action of the stamp, when the cam follower roller 77 is in the region C of the cam 27, as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 12(0), the uppermost edge of blade 70' is fully retracted below the outer cylindrical surface of housing 20.

FIG. 4 shows the normal or rest position of the mechanism of the invention in which the stamp is only partially severed while being held on the roll, and before the tripping lever 14 actuates the spring-loaded clutch to cause the housing to turn for one revolution.

The blade 70 of the invention is purposely designed to provide a rupturing of the perforations between stamps as distinguished from a cutting action as achieved by a sharp knife blade. For this purpose the arcuate-shaped severing surface has a thin flat edge which, as the blade descends into the narrow slot 82 in the housing 20, bursts the paper between the perforations in the line of perforations, thus providing the same appearance on the severed stamps as though the stamps were torn by hand from the roll, thereby furnishing a personal touch to the stamps when they are affixed to the printed matter. In one embodiment of the invention built and successfully tested, the slot 82 in the housing 20 was approximately .003 wider than the thickness of the blade 70. When the blade descends to sever the stamp from the roll along the line of perforations, a double thickness of stamp (the stamp has a thickness of .004") tries to enter the slot 82 but cannot do so, hence the stamp ruptures along the line of perforations which is the weakest part of the stamp roll.

Operation of invention After the roll of stamps 22 has been placed into the housing and the stamps threaded through the pin roller, the passage of printed matte-r through the machine will trip lever 14 to cause the spring-actuated clutch to rotate the housing 20 for a single revolution. Each :piece of printed matter will actuate the lever 14 and cause the cycle of operations to be repeated. Hence there is a continual intermittent motion of the cylindrical housing. The rest or normal starting posit-ion is shown in FIG. 4 where the stamp has been only partially severed and the severing blade is below the outer surface of the moisture shield cover. As the housing turns in a counter-clockwise direction, the cam follower roller 30 will enter the indents on cam 21 at a predetermined time and cause the wetting pad to contact and slide over the moisture shield cover to thereby wet or moisten only the stamp on the outer surface region 53 of the cylinder housing. As the housing continues to rotate, the wetting pad is withdrawn from the housing because the cam follower roller 30 will no longer dwell in the indents of cam 21. In the general position shown in FIG. 5, the cam follower roller 77 of the severing blade unit will then roll over region C of the cam A and cause complete severing of the stamp, im mediately after which the stamp is affixed on the advancing printed matter at the location shown in FIG. 6. A spring-loaded idler ejector roller 90, driven by a roller 91 on the base 8 (shown in dotted lines in FIG. 8) serves to advance the stamped printed matter away from the machine. If desired, the ejector roller may be followed by one or more pairs of stamp press-down rollers, not shown, between which the stamps affixed on printed matter will pass for guaranteeing positive adhesion of the stamp on the printed matter.

As the housing continues to advance in a counterclockwise direction, the cam follower roller 77 of the severing blade assembly will pass region C of the cam 27 and ride over region A of cam 27 at which time the blade 70 will be Withdrawn away from the outer surface of the housing 20 in the position shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 12(a) and 13 in which the cutout portion 71 is fully exposed to permit the entry of a stamp therethrough. It is at this position that a spoke 55 on the wheel '54 engages the stationary lug 56 of the stationary metallic cover 57 to thereby cause the wheel 54 and pin roller 43 'to rotate one-quarter turn and advance a stamp under the arcuate-shaped rupturing surface 72 of the blade 70. This cycle of operations is repeated for each revolution of the housing in response to each movement of the trip lever 14. The postage stamp afiixer attachment of the invention is able to take the roll of stamps with printed side out as supplied by the Government and turn the stamps without rewinding to expose the gummed side of the stamps to the wetting device.

A register records the number of revolutions of the housing or casing 20 and hence the amount of printed matter upon which stamps have been afiixed.

It should be understood that the invention is not limited to use as an attachment on the Pitney-Bowes postage meter machine but can be used as a postage stamp head or unit on other paper feeding machines, as long as there is room to mount the mechanism of the invention with a bracket for the water moistening device.

What is claimed is:

1. Mechanism for alfixing stamps to printed matter, comprising a generally cylindrically-shaped rotatable housing for supporting therein a roll of stamps, an exit slot in said housing parallel to the axis of said housing for enabling said stamps to emerge from said housing for subsequent affixation to said printed matter, an arcuateshaped blade mounted on said housing for severing said stamps from said roll between adjacent stamps, means for rotating said housing and arcuate-shaped blade, and means operating in timed relation to said first means for moving said blade in a direction toward said stamps for only partly severing said stamps from one another along the line of perforations at both opposite edges of the line of perforations between adjacent stamps in one position of said rotatable housing and for completing the severing operation of adjacent stamps at another position of said rotatable housing.

2. Mechanism for affixing postage stamps to printed matter, comprising a generally cylindrically-shaped rotatable housing for supporting therein a roll of stamps of the type where adjacent stamps are joined to one another by a line of perforations, an exit slot in said housing for enabling said stamps to emerge therefrom, a shaft for rotating said housing, an arcuate-shaped blade mounted on said housing and rotatable therewith for severing said stamps from said roll along said lines of perforation, posts on opposite ends of said blade for supporting said blade, said blade being held in said posts, and means operating in timed relation to said shaft for moving said blade and said posts in a downward direction toward said stamps for only partly severing said stamps from one another at both opposite edges along the line of perforations between adjacent stamps in one position of said rotatable housing and for completing the severing operation of adjacent stamps at another position of said rotatable housing.

3. Mechanism according to claim 1, wherein adjacent stamps of said roll are joined to one another by a line of perforations and the severing edge of said blade is relatively flat for rupturing said line of perforations.

4. Mechanism according to claim 3, including cams mounted exteriorly of said housing, and a cam follower roller riding on at least one of said cams and mechanically coupled to said blade for moving said blade in timed relation to the movement of said shaft.

5. Mechanism for affixing stamps to printed matter, comprising a generally cylindrically-shaped rotatable housing for supporting therein a roll of stamps, an exit slot in said housing parallel to the axis of said housing for enabling said stamps to emerge from said housing for afiixation to said printed matter, an arcuate-shaped moisture shield generally conforming to the circular shape of the outer surface of said housing aflixed to and positioned on the outer surface of said housing and extending over and for a short distance on both sides of said exit slot, there being a space between said slot and the overlying shield to permit free passage of the stamps externally of said housing, a shaft coupled to the center of the housing for providing intermittent rotatable motion of said housing, cams mounted exteriorly of said housing, a stamp moistening device positioned to one side of said housing and having a moistening pad adapted to pass over and contact said shield and then to contact the exposed surface of the stamps emerging from said exit, and a cam follower roller coupled to said moistening device and riding on at least one of said cams for enabling said pad to contact said shield and stamps in timed relation to the movement of the shaft.

6. Mechanism in accordance with claim 5, wherein the cam on which said cam follower rides is made up of two adjacently positioned, generally circular discs each having an arcuate-shaped indent on the outer periphery thereof, and means for adjusting the relative positions of said indents to thereby vary the length of dwell of said roller in said indents.

7. Mechanism for affixing stamps to printed matter, comprising a generally cylindrically-shaped rotatable housing for supporting therein a roll of stamps, an exit slot in said housing parallel to the axis of said housing for enabling said stamps to emerge from said housing for affixation to said printed matter, an arcuate-shaped moisture shield generally conforming to the circular shape of the outer surface of said housing affixed to and positioned on the outer surface of said housing and extending over and for a short distance on both sides of said exit slot, there being a space between said slot and the overlying shield to permit free passage of the stamps externally of said housing, a shaft coupled to the center of the housing for providing intermittent rotatable motion of said housing, an arcuate-shaped blade mounted on said housing slightly beyond that end of said shield which covers said stamps as they emerge from said exit, said blade being rotatable with said housing, means operating in timed relation with said shaft for moving said blade in a direction to sever said stamps.

8. Mechanism for aflixing stamps to printed matter, comprising a generally cylindrically-shaped rotatable housing for supporting therein a roll of stamps, an exit slot in said housing parallel to the axis of said housing for enabling said stamps to emerge from said housing for subsequent aflixation to said printed matter, an arcuateshaped blade mounted on said housing for severing said stamps from said roll between adjacent stamps, means for rotating said housing and arcuate-shaped blade, and means operating in timed relation to said first means for moving said blade in a direction toward said stamps for only partly severing said stamps from one another along the line of perforations at both opposite edges of the line of perforations between adjacent stamps in one position of said rotatable housing and for completing the severing operation of adjacent stamps at another position of said rotatable housing, a post in said housing eccentrically positioned relative to the axis of said housing for supporting said roll of stamps, and a roller Within and close to the inner cylindrical surface of said housing and having pins thereon for advancing said roll of stamps.

9. Mechanism according to claim 8, including a removable face plate for said housing, said face plate having a hole therein registering with the free end of said post for attaching the face plate to said post, said cylindrical housing having a cut-out portion on that cylindrical edge which is nearest to said face plate, said face plate having a protuberance on its edge for insertion into said cut-out portion.

10. Mechanism for aflixing stamps to printed matter, comprising a generally cylindrically-shaped rotatable housing for supporting therein a roll of stamps, an exit slot in said housing parallel to the axis of said housing for enabling said stamps to emerge from said housing for subsequent aflixation to said printed matter, an arcuateshaped blade mounted on said housing for severing said stamps from said roll along a line between adjacent stamps, means for rotating said housing and arcuateshaped blade, and means operating in timed relation to said first means for moving said blade in a direction toward said stamps for only partly severing said stamps from one another along the line of perforations at both opposite edges of the line of perforations between adjacent stamps in one position of said rotatable housing and for completing the severing operation of adjacent stamps at another position of said rotatable housing, a post in said housing eccentrically positioned relative to the axis of said'housing for supporting said roll of stamps, a removable face plate for said housing, said face plate having a hole therein registering with the free end of said post, said post having a threaded opening at the free end thereof, and means mounted on the outside of said face plate to vary the precise distance of said face plate in relation to the roll of stamps contained within said housing and mounted on said post.

11. Mechanism according to claim 9, wherein said face plate is provided with a circular centrally-positioned recessed portion on the inner surface thereof.

12. Mechanism according to claim 2, wherein said blade is rectangular in shape and has a cut-out portion within all four sides of the rectangle and through which the stamps which emerge from said exit slot pass, the upper surface of said cut-out portion being arcuate-shaped, said means operating in timed relation to said shaft for moving said blade including a cam coupled to said housing and a cam roller riding on said cam and mechanically connected to said blade.

13. Mechanism according to claim 2, wherein said means includes a cam attached to and rotating with said housing and a shaft-like bar attached to said blade and having a free end provided with a cam follower roller riding on said cam, one of said posts having a hollow portion therein in which there is a resilient spring exerting pressure on said shaft-like bar.

14. Mechanism according to claim 7, wherein the cylindriclly-shaped housing is provided with a slot into which said blade can be retracted, said last slot being appreciably narrower than and spaced from said stamp exit slot, the thickness of the material of said housing at the location of said exit slot and said moisture shield being less than the thickness of the material of said housing at the location immediately following said exit slot in relation to the direction of rotation of said housing.

15. Mechanism for afiixing stamps to printed matter, comprising a generally cylindrically-shaped rotatable housing for supporting therein a roll of stamps, a roller mounted within and movable with said housing, said roller being close to the inner cylindrical surface of said housing and provided with spaced pins on the periphery thereof for advancing said roll of stamps, a wheel mounted on one end of said roller and provided with a plurality of spaced radially positioned spokes, said spokes having tapered sides, a stationary cover -for said housing having a lug thereon protruding from the interior surface of said cover for engaging one of said spokes as said wheel revolves with said housing past said lug, and means on said cover for adjusting the position of said stationary lug in relation to the tapered length of said spokes, to

12 thereby vary the precise timing at which the lug engages and turns said wheel.

16. Mechanism according to claim 8, wherein said roller is mounted in said housing and revolves therewith, a wheel mounted on one end of said roller and provided with a plurality of spaced radially positioned tapered spokes, said spokes being wider at the center of said wheel than at the ends thereof, a stationary cover for said housing having a lug thereon protruding from the interior surface of said cover for engaging one of said spokes and turning said roller whenever said wheel moves past said lug, and means on said cover for varying the position of said lug in relation to the precise point of contact with the tapered sides of said spokes, to thereby vary the precise time of impact of said wheel with said lug.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,482,731 2/1924- Burr 156-442 1,838,841 12/1931 Keiser 156-522 3,346,439 10/1967 Bollman et al 156522 DOUGLAS J. DRUMMOND, Primary Examiner. 

1. MECHANISM FOR AFFIXING STAMPS TO PRINTED MATTER, COMPRISING A GENERALLY CYLINDRICALLY-SHAPED ROTATABLE HOUSING FOR SUPPORTING THEREIN A ROLL OF STAMPS, AN EXIT SLOT IN SAID HOUSING PARALLEL TO THE AXIS OF SAID HOUSING FOR ENABLING SAID STAMPS TO EMERGE FROM SAID HOUSING FOR SUBSEQUENT AFFIXATION TO SAID PRINTED MATTER, AN ARCUATESHAPED BLADE MOUNTED ON SAID HOUSING FOR SEVERING SAID STAMPS FROM SAID ROLL BETWEEN ADJACENT STAMPS, MEANS FOR ROTATING SAID HOUSING AND ARCUATE-SHAPED BLADE, AND MEANS OPERATING IN TIMED RELATION TO SAID FIRST MEANS FOR MOVING SAID BLADE IN A DIRECTION TOWARD SAID STAMPS FOR 